Buddhism Test Flashcards
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama and all others who have by their own insight attained perfect enlightenment
Middle Way
A basic Buddhist teaching that rejects both the pleasure of sensual indulgence and the self-denial of asceticism, focusing on a practical approach to spiritual attainment.
nirvana
The ultimate goal of all Buddhists, is the extinction of desire and any sense of individual selfhood, resulting in liberation from samsara and its limiting conditions.
sangha (assemblage)
The Buddhist community of monks and nuns
Dharma
The teachings of the Buddha
Pali
An ancient language of India, similar to Sanskrit and used in the writing of the earliest Buddhist texts
Three Marks of Existence
Characteristics that summarize the changing nature of reality: anatta (no-self), anicca (impermanence), and dukkha (suffering.
Anatta (no-self)
The Buddhist doctrine denying a permanent self
Anicca (impermanence)
The Buddhist doctrine that all existent things are constantly changing
Five Percepts
The basic moral requirements that are binding for all Buddhists
Four Noble Truths
The central teachings of Buddhism:
To live is to experience suffering
Suffering is caused by desire
The cessation of suffering can be achieved
The solution is the Noble Eightfold Path
dukkha (suffering, frustration)
First of the Four Noble Truths; the basic Buddhist insight that suffering is part of the human condition
Tanha (desire)
The second of the Four Noble Truths, selfish desire, which causes dukkha
Noble Eightfold Path
The fourth of the Four Noble Truths; defines the basic practices of Buddhism that leads to Nirvana
arhat
One who has become enlightened; the ideal type for Theravada Buddhism
Mahayana (The Great Vehicle)
the largest of Buddhism’s three divisions encompasses a variety of forms, including those that emphasize devotion and prayer to the Buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Theravada (the way of the elders)
A prevalent form of Buddhism in Cambodia, Burma, Sri Lanka, etc. Focuses on the earliest texts and emphasizes monastic lifestyle
bodhisattvas
Future Buddhas
Vajrayana (The vehicle of the diamond)
prevalent form of Buddhism in Tibet; emphasizes the harnessing of sensual energies to attain nirvana.
mandalas (circles)
patterned icons that visually excite; used in Vajrayana Buddhism to enhance meditation
mudras
choreographed hand movements used in the rituals of Vajrayana Buddhism.
mantras
phrases or syllables chanted to evoke a deity or to enhance meditation; used in Hinduism and Buddhism, especially in Vajrayana
Dalai Lama
the spiritual leader of Vajrayana Buddhism believed to be an incarnation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshevara.
